Chapter 176

Jia Jing charged alone into the Northern Yuan army formation, holding a bright silver dragon-gall spear, its shaft as thick as a child's arm, the whole thing shining silver.

The spear tip flashed with a blinding edge in the sunlight…… A spear weighing over a hundred jin, held single‑handed in his grasp, felt as light as an ordinary wooden stick.

Niu Jizong looked solemnly at Feng Tang and Han Wu on either side, opening his mouth several times to speak, yet still said nothing.

Although he was worried in his heart, military orders on the battlefield are as immovable as a mountain, allowing no bargaining; he could only obey.

Helpless, he could only order Zhu Que to have the two thousand light cavalry behind them hold back, rest and await orders.

Afterward, Niu Jizong, Feng Tang, and a few others rode forward several steps, gripped the reins tightly, stared intently at the battlefield, ready to spur their horses to support Jia Jing at any moment.

At the same time,

Seeing only a single Han reinforcement charging the gate, Zhou Yingyuan, Yu Shiyong, and the others below the city gate all turned pale with shock.

They had fought the Northern Yuan forces for many days, yet they were well aware that the enemy's strength was not weak.

Charging alone on horseback into a fifty‑thousand‑strong Northern Yuan formation, even if one's martial prowess is astonishing, it is nothing more than suicide.

"Brothers, do not throw away your lives for us in vain!"

Yu Shiyong shouted with all his strength toward Jia Jing's direction.

Although he knew Jia Jing might not hear him, he still bellowed, urging Jia Jing not to die pointlessly.

Seeing this, the other Han soldiers beneath the gate clenched their teeth, fought fiercely, and secretly broke a sweat for Jia Jing in their hearts.

Meanwhile, the Northern Yuan Crown Prince Ba Ya'er, standing under the central banner of the Northern Yuan army, heard Jia Jing's loud cry, his expression first tightening as he thought the Han forces numbered more than these two thousand cavalry, perhaps with an ambush.

Then, seeing Jia Jing alone on horseback charging forward, he was stunned for a moment, then burst into loud laughter:

"Ha… Commander Wanhu, look—this Han general must be mad, daring to charge alone against my fifty‑thousand‑strong army!"

Tuo Tuo Bu Hua likewise narrowed his eyes, a hint of doubt in his gaze, pondered, then spoke slowly:

"I have heard that the Han general Jia Jing is extraordinarily brave; once, at Jizhou City under the Han Dynasty, he smashed the gate single‑handedly, possessing a power like that of gods and ghosts."

"Your Highness, we had better be cautious."

Ba Ya'er heard this, his handsome face froze for a moment, then he laughed:

"Commander Wanhu, you worry too much! That is merely a rumor spread by the Han people."

"Taking an enemy commander's head from amidst ten thousand troops is nothing but a fantasy in Han storybooks. No matter how brave he is, could he possibly withstand my myriad soldiers?"

"Wasn't Zhou Yingyuan just now also trying to charge into my central banner? And now, isn't he…"

Tuo Tuo Bu Hua offered no rebuttal; in truth he also did not believe that personal martial prowess could break a myriad‑strong army.

Yet years of campaigning taught him that even a lion hunting a rabbit uses its full strength; on the battlefield, caution is never excessive.

Thus he coldly barked the order:

"Divide another three thousand to wipe out the last remnants of the Han troops beneath the gate; act quickly, for we do not know whether the Han have further reinforcements—we must storm the city at once."

"As for this Han general who charged, do not kill him lightly; Tiemuer, take three hundred elite cavalry and capture him for me."

Ba Ya'er heard Tuo Tuo Bu Hua's cautious deployment and snorted inwardly. Indeed, the older the general, the smaller his courage.

"Is it really necessary to dispatch three hundred elite cavalry just to capture this one Han general?"

"Moreover, Tiemuer is a famed fierce general of the Northern Yuan; sending him with three hundred men is truly using a butcher's knife to kill a chicken."

Ba Ya'er felt contempt but kept it from showing; after all, he was merely a vice commander and would not interfere in Tuo Tuo Bu Hua's arrangements unless absolutely necessary.

Following Tuo Tuo Bu Hua's order, three hundred Northern Yuan cavalry under the command of Colonel Tiemuer set off at a gallop toward Jia Jing.

At this moment Jia Jing was already very close to the Northern Yuan vanguard; in a moment he clashed with Tiemuer and his men.

Tiemuer led the charge, arriving first before Jia Jing, swinging his hook‑spear to hook him off his horse and take him alive.

He is a famed fierce general of the Northern Yuan, once having split a tiger in half with a bone‑club; very few in the Northern Yuan army can evade his strike.

In the flash of lightning and spark, Tiemuer's hook‑spear came within less than a foot of Jia Jing's body.

Jia Jing, without even glancing at Tiemuer, spurred his Red Hare Horse forward, flying past like a gale.

At the same instant, he shook his Longdan Bright Silver Spear; the tip struck first, lightly touching Tiemuer's chest.

Having fully merged the martial might of Zhao Yun, Lu Bu, and Xiang Yu, Jia Jing had never before unleashed his full power; even he did not know how strong he was now.

He only knew that he was roughly a bit stronger than when he shattered the gate at Jizhou City.

His spear technique at this moment was not merely Zhao Yun's "Birds Facing the Phoenix" and "Seven Probes of the Coiling Snake"; it also incorporated Lu Bu's invincible halberd method and Xiang Yu's single‑handed eighteen thrusts.

One could say that, purely in martial skill, he had reached a peak rarely seen in ancient or modern times, with every spear and halberd technique become second nature.

All that could be seen was Jia Jing's Bright Silver Spear, weighing over a hundred jin, lightly touching the armor on Tiemuer's chest.

That seemingly light touch directly shattered Tiemuer into pieces, his face still registering astonishment.

In an instant, even his armor vanished, leaving only a mist of blood hanging over his horse's back.

The scattered flesh and blood sprayed onto the surrounding Northern Yuan cavalry, striking seven or eight of them so that they vomited blood and fell from their horses, clearly lifeless.

This sight instantly caused Tuo Tuo Bu Hua and Ba Ya'er, who had been intently watching the battle, to tighten their expressions, shock plain on their faces.

"This Han general is astonishingly brave!"

"Tiemuer didn't even get to exchange a single move in his hands—he was blasted apart by a single strike."

"Moreover, the flying flesh and blood killed seven or eight nearby Northern Yuan horsemen; this force is far more than a thousand jin."

"Don't bother taking him alive—swarm him and kill him outright."

Tuo Tuo Bu Hua immediately changed his tactic, shouting at the three hundred cavalry ahead to avoid excessive losses on his side.

In an instant, a variety of weapons—bone clubs, spears, axes, sabers—slashed toward Jia Jing from all directions.

Blades and spears flashed from every side, seeking to hack Jia Jing to pieces.

Jia Jing's expression remained unchanged, his eyes cold, killing intent fierce; the red brocade hundred‑flower robe from Sichuan behind him billowed violently.

He gripped the spear with both hands, swept it outward in a wide arc—the Longdan Bright Silver Spear moved so fast only its afterimage was visible; as he swung, the spear's wind howled, actually raising a gust.

Within a radius of three zhang, dozens of Northern Yuan cavalry, men and horses alike, were swept away like straw struck by a giant hammer.

Tumbling in the air, landing, tumbling again, he knocked over the companions rushing from behind.

For a moment, the sound of falling off horses was unceasing in his ears.

Many Northern Yuan cavalry, even without getting close to Jia Jing's side, were knocked from their horses by the impact of the companions ahead, blood spurting continuously from their mouths.

Fresh blood, along with severed limbs and broken arms, spilled across the ground; the area around Jia Jing became empty for a moment.

Jia Jing did not stop; the Red Hare Horse continued its fearless charge, like a red bolt of lightning, cutting deep into the three hundred cavalry.